One way to look at OXIDE is to consider it a work by a photographer, wandering the streets of a fictional city. We are provided with lots of descriptive evidence, but not much explanation. It’s a setting for a story, without the story. It’s clear, however, the place is kind of funny, kind of sad and definitely askew. For instance, the section titled “The Academy” depicts what appears to be a university campus that, instead of being composed of traditional academic buildings, is made up largely of repurposed, sometimes dilapidated structures and box cars. In fact, the inhabitants of this academic world often seem to get things a little wrong, at least by our yardstick. The study of Romance Languages has nothing to do with love, and there is no such thing as a Department of Chronological Science, etc. Other sections of town are depicted in a similar fashion with a similar propensity for misunderstanding and alternate customs. OXIDE is divided into thematic sections, or chapters, and upon closer reading the viewer will find cross references and repeated themes. One can flip through the book and peruse the pictures, but it’s more rewarding to indulge in a closer reading. All pictures are composites, typically made up of a base photograph with added text or iconography.